Kevin Durant-Draymond Green Bombshells Reveal Bigger NBA Truths

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2947502




Kevin Durant-Draymond Green Bombshells Reveal Bigger NBA Truths



A. SHERROD BLAKELY
AUGUST 20, 2021




When Kevin Durant and Draymond Green were teammates in Golden State, it wasn't hard to understand why they were so awesome together.

Green was the do-it-all pest defensively with the ability to effectively guard all five positions. His defense, will to win and overall ability to be a pain in the you-know-what to most opponents is what endears him to many and makes him an effective player.

However, the three-time All-Star and former NBA Defensive Player of the Year (2017) hasn't been much of a scorer, averaging just 8.8 points per game.

Durant, on many levels, is at the opposite end of the basketball-playing spectrum. The 32-year-old Durant is a career 27.0 point-per-game scorer, the fifth-highest scoring average all-time.


He also has 23,883 career points. To put that in perspective, only 25 players in NBA history have scored more points than Durant.  

So it's easy to assume that, because their pathways toward success have been so divergent, that they, too, would have their share of differences, even in the midst of having a common goal of winning a championship.

That's why it was so easy to completely buy into their so-called beef back in 2018, when during a game against the Los Angeles Clippers, an on-the-floor tiff between them spilled into the locker room. It became a full-blown argument that ended with the Warriors suspending Green for the following game.


Both players recently addressed the situation, and they were both bothered by the roles head coach Steve Kerr and team president of basketball operations/general manager Bob Myers played.

Durant would leave Golden State after that season to play for the Brooklyn Nets.

In the first episode of CHIPS, hosted by Green, Durant says the confrontation between him and Green wasn't what led to him bolting the Bay.

"It wasn't the argument," Durant said. "It was the way that everybody ... Steve Kerr acted like it didn't happen. Bob Myers tried to just discipline you and think that that would put the mask over everything. I really felt like those—it was such a big situation for us as a group, the first time we went through something like that. We had to get that s--t all out."

Said Green, "In my opinion, they f--ked this up."

Durant agreed. "I think so, too."





Hearing Green and Durant shed light on what was clearly a turning point for the Warriors organization—they haven't been to the playoffs in any season since, and no, the play-in game does not count—is both entertaining and a cautionary tale for fans and media alike.

There is a level of interpersonal dynamics at play that—when it comes to professional athletes—will rarely see the light of day. But while their styles of play and demeanors may differ, you will be hard-pressed to find two more competitive players in the NBA.

That is why Durant joining forces with the Warriors in 2016 and winning two NBA titles in a three-year span (and being named Finals MVP in both years) made so much sense for what he was looking for and what Golden State had to offer.

And of all the relationships that needed to work, there was little doubt or concern about how well Durant and Green would work in tandem…until that eventful night on Nov. 18, 2018.

***

What happened between Durant and Green was highly public and vividly memorable, but it was neither the first nor last time competitors from the same team got heated.

We have seen teammates get into it for as long as the NBA has been around.

There have been relatively minor dust-ups, like LeBron James and Mario Chalmers getting into it in 2013 as members of the Miami Heat. Another example: Isaiah Thomas and Julius Randle, both with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018, having a heated exchange.


Occasionally those words spoken in anger lead to a physical confrontation, like when Markieff Morris pushed Archie Goodwin in 2016 when they were teammates in Phoenix.

That physical encounter pales in comparison to the altercation between Bobby Portis and Nikola Mirotic at a practice in 2017 when they played for the Chicago Bulls.

The fight left Mirotic with a concussion and multiple facial fractures, which earned Portis an eight-game suspension.


Lynne Sladky/Associated Press


While the factors that led to each of those incidents differ, the one thing they all have in common is that the tension we all saw in that moment didn't linger—with the exception being Portis and Mirotic, who were not on speaking teams even after Mirotic returned from his injuries.

Following the incident, Mirotic asked to be traded and got his wish right before the 2018 trade deadline when the Bulls sent him to New Orleans.

"Niko's (Mirotic's) representatives were consistent over the last several months that they wanted him moved," John Paxson, then-Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations, told reporters at the time. "They never backed off of that stance one bit."

And while what happened between Portis and Mirotic was indeed extreme, it's not uncommon for things to get testy in an NBA locker room.

"I don't think the average fan, or the average reporter for that matter, really knows or understands how much s--t happens in the locker room that, if they knew, would be a big deal when the truth is, it's guys letting off some steam," an Eastern Conference assistant coach said. "Just like you hear these guys say all the time, 'you gotta have a short memory' if you play well or not. Well, the same holds true if you and a teammate or a coach get into it. You gotta let that s--t go and move on."


There are some athletes who can move on from the triggering incident, but they can't undo the collateral damage it caused.

Green and Durant won a pair of titles together during a three-year run. Had Durant stayed with the Warriors, there's a high probability the Larry O'Brien trophy would have had at least one more year of residency in the Bay Area.

And while Durant surely had lots of reasons for deciding to take his talents to Brooklyn and join forces with Kyrie Irving and later James Harden, he's pretty clear on the way his blowout with Green was handled by the Warriors, which played a role in his decision to leave.

Which is why, when it comes to relationships among players and franchises, the one thing you can count on is messiness.

The marriage between players and organizations…messy.

The breakup…messy.

The factors leading to the breakup…messy.

When it comes to NBA relationships, they're not all that different than most relationships. The simple truth is, there's really nothing simple about them.

They are complicated.

They are convoluted.

And at times, they are downright confusing.

But what sticks out when it comes to NBA relationships is how they keep us on the edge of our seats, waiting to see if we're witnessing a basketball brouhaha or the latest basketball bromance.

As Green's conversation with Durant revealed, sometimes we get both.


Bob
MY NOTE:  We had a minor version of this, I think, with Keith Bogans.  It was dealt with immediately by suspending him from the team and all team practices, meetings, events and trips.  He was paid, but he was told to stay away (reports were he said something to Brad in a very bad way because Brad was playing the kids and wasn't playing veterans like him and Gerald Wallace).  Other than that not even Kyrie's locker room turmoil rose to the level of Portis and Mirotic or even Green and Durant.  Doc's attitude on this was to leave it to the players to work it out.  Well, other than the lifelong friends of PP and KG, how'd that work?  Ray Allen felt disrespected and left, Tony Allen felt disrespected and left.  In LA there were jealousies because Doc pandered to his stars again.  In Philly he's siding with Embiid over Simmons and Simmons is now ghosting the entire team.  I understand why you would want to make sure Embiid is happy before you start worrying about Simmons, Embiid is the more valuable player by far, but Doc's hands-off "let the players work it out" approach isn't working again, just as it didn't work in GSW with Steve Kerr, who is a very cool, laid-back non-confrontational guy.  In my opinion it is just letting a couple of super-rich, uber-competitive 20-something adrenaline freaks run their own asylum.  What could possibly go wrong with that mixture?


.

What a fantastic interview! After watching all the horrible puff pieces over the years from so-called professional interviewers, this was a freaking joy to watch. I feel like I understand the game and team dynamics little better, and have a better sense of who KD and DG really are. Had no idea what a thoughtful dude Durant is (DG too).

Thoughtful dude Durant is? I don’t see it, see a pampered coddled entitled person out of touch with reality, how is this Kerrs fault? So Kerr thought it would go away, did they want them to do more or less? Guess 2 teammates yelling at each other during the game and into the lockeroom was a good look for the league and was somehow managements fault?

I have no problem with them getting in a heated argument in a game, doesn’t effect me in the slightest, I am puzzled how they put the blame the aftermath on Kerr and management for their actions….

cowens/oldschool wrote:I have no problem with them getting in a heated argument in a game, doesn’t effect me in the slightest, I am puzzled how they put the blame the aftermath on Kerr and management for their actions….

Cow,

They're upset there wasn't any parenting, forgetting they were 20-something men themselves at the time.


Bob


.

bobheckler wrote:

cowens/oldschool wrote:I have no problem with them getting in a heated argument in a game, doesn’t effect me in the slightest, I am puzzled how they put the blame the aftermath on Kerr and management for their actions….

Cow,

They're upset there wasn't any parenting, forgetting they were 20-something men themselves at the time.


Bob


.

That’s what I thought, so it’s Kerr and Meyers fault.

Guess when Muhammad Ali lost a few times it was Angelo Dundee’s fault

bobheckler wrote:

cowens/oldschool wrote:I have no problem with them getting in a heated argument in a game, doesn’t effect me in the slightest, I am puzzled how they put the blame the aftermath on Kerr and management for their actions….

Cow,

They're upset there wasn't any parenting, forgetting they were 20-something men themselves at the time.


Bob


.

Back when they were in school, the curriculum probably didn't include "Adulting" Classes.

https://parade.com/924439/tinadonvito/adulting-classes-for-millennials/#:~:text=Adulting%20classes%20aim%20to%20teach%20both%20practical%20life,that%20help%20people%20effectively%20communicate%20personally%20and%20professionally.

FACT since that team had that heated exchange incident, the team has not even been in playoffs since. So from what I gather Kerr went soft, didn’t do anything, tried to let it blow over, the players didn’t like that. Meyers actually suspended Green for one game, trying for some discipline, they didn’t like that. Then Durant decides to leave….that was his choice, so how the f..k is that on Warriors management when you decide to ditch the team for another pasture…???

Why aren’t more pundits calling out these 2 jack as.es trying to play the blame game when Durant decides to exercise his freedom…???

GSW did not make the playoffs again because 2 of their three stars were gone, KD and Klay. Had Klay been healthy this year, GSW would have been in the Finals.

Re Ben Simmons, he is a great defender and a good scorer when within 8 feet of the basket, a role he rarely gets to play with Embiid on the court. Simmons would be super on another team scoring 20+ ppg if he were the inside man on offense. Not our problem.

No doubt, their job is to play and win. One of many tasks that The coaches and front office has is to manage their employees. Kerr and Meyers decision to handle it the way they did obviously didn’t work so they failed. Players have to manage up and managers have manage down. It appears to me that they all came up short.

Ktron wrote:No doubt, their job is to play and win. One of many tasks that The coaches and front office has is to manage their employees. Kerr and Meyers decision to handle it the way they did obviously didn’t work so they failed. Players have to manage up and managers have manage down. It appears to me that they all came up short.

+1 reasoned perspective. Regardless of what anyone might think of KD or DG the interview was way more interesting than the cliche crap we normally have listen to.

Ktron wrote:No doubt, their job is to play and win. One of many tasks that The coaches and front office has is to manage their employees. Kerr and Meyers decision to handle it the way they did obviously didn’t work so they failed. Players have to manage up and managers have manage down. It appears to me that they all came up short.

Excellent insight.

6'11"" and too short?

worcester wrote:GSW did not make the playoffs again because 2 of their three stars were gone, KD and Klay. Had Klay been healthy this year, GSW would have been in the Finals.

Re Ben Simmons, he is a great defender and a good scorer when within 8 feet of the basket, a role he rarely gets to play with Embiid on the court. Simmons would be super on another team scoring 20+ ppg if he were the inside man on offense. Not our problem.

I would think some coach should have figured out how to make it work. Giannis and Lopez worked, from a different era Parish and McHale and Kareem and Magic sure worked and would work today. Simmons also has exceptional ball handling skills, now according to media Simmons has tuned out Embid, Doc and the whole 76er team, what a mess!! From my eye test Embid can score from anywhere on the court, there are enough times he is out on perimeter, Simmons never maximized those opportunities.

Cow,

Is Simmons the modern version of Dwight Howard?

What I mean is that both of them hit the NBA with immense talent, put up great numbers and then never seemed to work on their craft at all during their careers. The media and the people around them told them that they were so great that they believed in it and didn't think improvement was needed?

gyso wrote:Cow,

Is Simmons the modern version of Dwight Howard?

What I mean is that both of them hit the NBA with immense talent, put up great numbers and then never seemed to work on their craft at all during their careers.  The media and the people around them told them that they were so great that they believed in it and didn't think improvement was needed?

Decent analogy, I would say in his prime Dwight Howard was way more dominant at his position than Simmons, both still terrible FT shooters. A lot of beasts in the paint never develop a perimeter game, but still do enough big man things, they will always have a job. On Simmons, 2 great ball handlers, perimeter players came in without a 3 point shot, developed them Magic Johnson and Jason Kidd. A shame Simmons has some mental block and refuses or can’t develop that part of his game, which has actually regressed. If Marcus Smart could put in the work and get at least respectable at the 3….Sixers should have got this kid a sports psychologist years ago.

Don Burkett was/is one of the best.

Shamrock1000 wrote:

Ktron wrote:No doubt, their job is to play and win. One of many tasks that The coaches and front office has is to manage their employees. Kerr and Meyers decision to handle it the way they did obviously didn’t work so they failed. Players have to manage up and managers have manage down. It appears to me that they all came up short.

+1 reasoned perspective. Regardless of what anyone might think of KD or DG the interview was way more interesting than the cliche crap we normally have listen to.

Truth! There’s more good stuff like this on YouTube. Highly recommend “All the Smoke” with Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes.

cowens/oldschool wrote:

gyso wrote:Cow,

Is Simmons the modern version of Dwight Howard?

What I mean is that both of them hit the NBA with immense talent, put up great numbers and then never seemed to work on their craft at all during their careers.  The media and the people around them told them that they were so great that they believed in it and didn't think improvement was needed?

Decent analogy, I would say in his prime Dwight Howard was way more dominant at his position than Simmons, both still terrible FT shooters. A lot of beasts in the paint never develop a perimeter game, but still do enough big man things, they will always have a job. On Simmons, 2 great ball handlers, perimeter players came in without a 3 point shot, developed them Magic Johnson and Jason Kidd. A shame Simmons has some mental block and refuses or can’t develop that part of his game, which has actually regressed. If Marcus Smart could put in the work and get at least respectable at the 3….Sixers should have got this kid a sports psychologist years ago.

Good points. The one thing I take exception to is the premise that the Sixers should have got Simmons a sports psychologist years ago.
Hiring a sports psychologist should be on the player. After all we are talking about psychology. If the player doesn’t have enough incentive and/or drive to figure out how to get better or overcome deficiency’s than he/she is going to stay stuck. There are players that hire their own Psychologists. Why? For the some of the same reasons I mentioned above.
It’s similar to alcoholic’s, If you don’t take upon yourself to admit it and get help, your boss or family member encouraging or insisting you get help doesn’t work. A judge forcing one to rehab because of a dui doesn’t work either.
He/she has to admit the problem and take the next steps themselves, by themselves. Apparently Simmons hasn’t.

It was Simmons' responsibility to help himself, but he is in a system which does not best use his talents and avoids his weaknesses.

worcester wrote:It was Simmons' responsibility to help himself, but he is in a system which does not best use his talents and avoids his weaknesses.

Well it was his decision to not dunk that basketball, I don’t know how a 6’11” freak athlete doesn’t dunk that ball in a tight playoff game where every possession is crucial….that was on him

worcester wrote:It was Simmons' responsibility to help himself, but he is in a system which does not best use his talents and avoids his weaknesses.

Worcester - do you know if the scientific literature shows that sports psychology actually works? I did a quick search and couldn't find much beyond anecdotes in the popular press.

I believe that sports performance is greatly determined by psychological attitudes, and some coaches know how to get their players in a winning state of mind. I owe my New England Championship in high school wrestling to my coach Don Knauf whose pre-finals match talk gave me the self-confidence to end my opponents 32 match win streak. Bill Russell is perhaps the best example of positive sports psychology at work. As for individual psychologists, their success is a very mixed bag, but Don Burkett pioneered the field in tennis and helped create  several Grand Slam champions, Chrissie Evert among them.

worcester wrote:I believe that sports performance is greatly determined by psychological attitudes, and some coaches know how to get their players in a winning state of mind. I owe my New England Championship in high school wrestling to my coach Don Knauf whose pre-finals match talk gave me the self-confidence to end my opponents 32 match win streak. Bill Russell is perhaps the best example of positive sports psychology at work. As for individual psychologists, their success is a very mixed bag, but Don Burkett pioneered the field in tennis and helped create  several Grand Slam champions, Chrissie Evert among them.

Thanks for the insight Worcester.